Page 107 of So Wild

“Maybe you can stop by the studio later?” she blurted out before she could stop herself. “I’m booked out until six but we could order some Chinese and just…talk this out?”

Scott’s face lit up. “You mean it? You want me to come over?”

“I…yes,” Sam said definitively, even though every word felt like it was scraping over some kind of internal asphalt. “I want you to come over and I want to talk. About us. Also about the six unweaned puppies your assistant and my sister smuggled into my home. That’s what I came to talk to you about, by the way.”

Scott frowned. “What do you—”

But he didn’t get a chance to finish. Toby burst into the office, his blue eyes wild. “Sorry to interrupt, Mr Sanderson, but I think I’ve done something bad.”

“Don’t worry about it,” Sam said. “I just told him about the puppies.”

“I don’t mean the puppies!” Toby’s gaze fixed on Scott. “It’s your dad. Your dad called and I told him you couldn’t come to the phone and he asked why and I told him you were with Samantha DaSilva and hefreaked out. He was yelling and swearing and then he said he was going to ‘sort this out’ and then he hung up.”

Scott pounded his fist into his forehead. “Oh fuck. Did you try calling him back?”

“Yes, but he’s not picking up.”

Scott pounded his forehead. “Shit.”

Sam felt her anger resurface. “What the hell, Galahad? Is this another example of how we’re going to make such a legitimate well-rounded couple? Your dad losing it at the mere mention of me?”

Scott turned to look at her, and she was shocked to see his face had bleached itself of color. “Whoa, what’s wrong?”

“There’s something I haven’t told you about my father. He’s not well. In fact, I think he might be mad.”

Sam tried for a consoling smile. “What else is new?”

“I’m not being glib, I mean that he’s sincerely not well and…look, there’s no time to explain. We need to get to Silver Daughters right now and make sure everything’s okay.”

“I…? Are you sure?”

But Scott was already striding around to his desk and collecting his suit jacket, his still-pale face set with unmistakable worry. Sam’s heart gave an unhealthy lurch in her chest. “Why would he go to Silver Daughters?”

Scott met her gaze squarely. “Because you were right that day in the pub. My father hates your family, and he always has. I just didn’t realise how much. Now let’s go.”

Chapter 19

Scott flexed hisfingers to keep them from biting down on the wheel. He tried to call his father again and again and each failed attempt escalated his feeling of doom. As hard as he tried, he couldn’t convince himself he was overreacting. He kept picturing his father bursting through the door of Silver Daughter to demand God knew what. Why hadn’t he taken steps to protect them? Protect Sam?

Because he’s my father and no one thinks their father is going to be that person.

Scott pressed his foot to the accelerator, overtaking an idling Suzuki Alto. He wished he and Samantha could have driven to Silver Daughters together, but she needed to get her car out of company parking and she didn’t seem keen on talking to him. Her trip to his office had been a clusterfuck. That was his fault. He should have made it clear to Martha that he found the way she talked about Samantha’s tattoos offensive. He’d been rattled because he didn’t understand how Martha, or anyone, could look at her and see anything but breathtaking beauty. Maybe Samantha was right—maybe he was naïve.

He heard his phone buzz twice.

“Siri, read the message out loud, please?”

“Your latest message is from Toby Tennant, it reads. ‘Hey Mr Sanderson, I’ve tried calling your dad a bunch of times but I can’t reach him. I also can’t get the tattoo shop, the line’s busy. I’ll keep at it exclamation point.’”

Panic rose in Scott’s guts like acid.

“Siri,” he said. “Call Silver Daughters Ink, please?”

“Calling Silver Daughters Ink…” came the robotic reply. Scott held his breath, and he must have been owed a break because someone picked up after only two rings. “Hello, Silver Daughters Ink?”

“Nicole?” Scott said with relief. “It’s me, Scott.”

“Hi, you sound out of breath, is everything okay?”

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